Splinter and a Sunburn
by Squiggle.giggle
Summary: Four damn tours in Afghanistan, I got a splinter and a sunburn, I'm back for an afternoon and this? The story of how Rick got that splinter and sunburn Drewick


Splinter and a sunburn

_4 damn tours in Afghanistan, I got a splinter and a sunburn, I'm back for an afternoon and this?_

Drew watched the soldiers enjoying their down time as he lazily sorted through the supplies in the Medical Tent, keeping an eye on one particular soldier. While some had taken to listening to music, tossing around a football, Captain Lincoln was lounging shirtless on a camp chair, his camouflage hat resting over his eyes. He had to admit it was a pretty good view.

All too soon he had a nurse retrieve him and he attended to his patients. Nothing too difficult today, a few cases of heat stroke and dehydration. The Afghanistan sun burned a lot hotter here than it did back in the states and most weren't prepared for the sweltering heat. His shift carried on, checking IV fluids and temperatures of the recovering soldiers before he discharged them with some advice on how to survive the brutal sun.

The music outside had disappeared and noticed that it had gotten darker, a quick glance at his watch signalled that it was close to dinner time and everyone had gone off to the Mess Hall. Well, all except one, Rick must have fallen asleep whilst sunbathing. Drew told the other staff to head off for dinner while he went to check on the captain. Approaching him, Drew could tell in the setting sun that Rick's skin was a nice shade of lobster red, he placed a hand on the captain's bicep and feeling the heat radiating from his skin. Rick hissed at the contact and sat up in alert at the disturbance.

"You know," Drew began as he removed his hand, "there are easier ways of getting a tan."

"What?" Rick mumbled, raking a hand down his face and rubbed the sleep from his eyes. Drew smirked and motioned with his hand to the captain's bare chest. "Ah shit." Rick poked himself in the chest watching as it momentarily went from red to white back to bright red.

"Come on," Drew extended a hand and helped the other man up, walking to the Medical tent their hands intertwined longer than necessary before dropping them. The doctor directed the other man to an empty bed before he gathered some supplies and placed them on a tray. Pulling the curtain around them, Drew smirked as he started putting on some gloves.

"What are you smirking at?" Rick asked, eyeing the doctor as he grabbed a white package off the tray.

"Oh I'm just imagining in a few days when you're on a mission, wearing pounds of gear while your chest is blistered and peeling from the sunburn. You'll look like a lizard shedding his skin."

"I thought doctors were supposed to be nice to their patients- THAT'S COLD!" Rick flinched as Drew applied a snap ice pack to the soldier's skin.

"It's cool at best you big baby, they don't get too cold in this heat," Drew replied smoothly as he guided the other man's hand to hold it against his chest, noticing Rick had his shirt tucked into the waist band of his fatigue trousers; he took it swiftly and poured some water from his canteen over it before draping it across the other man's shoulders. "My oath is to treat patients, being nice has nothing to do with it."

"Oh really?" Rick asked with a flirtatious smile, interested as the doctor grabbed a bottle filled with green gel.

"Well there are some patients I make an exception for," Drew explained as he squeezed some Aloe Vera onto his gloved hand.

"And how does someone become one of these special patients?" Rick asked coquettishly, rather enjoying himself as he felt the other man's hands start to massage softly over his chest.

"I like food," Drew said with a shrug "and not those MRE's they try to pass off as food, tastes like wet cardboard more than anything else."

"I hear ya," Rick agreed, smirking as he felt the doctor's hands slide much lower than necessary on his stomach. "I do anything for a fresh apple, not this Styrofoam pieces of crap that the army tries to pass off as the real thing." The captain started to notice the gel was drying on his chest but the doctor showed no intentions of stopping. "I think it's rubbed in," Drew smiled devilishly as his hands caressed their way to the other man's neck and slowly leant in.

"I don't think it is." Rick hesitated momentarily, eyes darting around to check his surroundings as he leant in as well. Their lips barely grazed each other's before Drew pulled back instantly, Rick blinked in a daze wondering what went wrong then heard faint laughter and feet shuffling into the tent.

"Hey doc!" a fellow soldier greeted as he ripped the curtain back "whoa Cap what happened to you?"

"It would be wise to knock next time soldier," Rick growled.

"Oh sorry I'm just here for my medication, Drew said the anti-biotic needs to be taken with food."

"Wait outside please," Drew told before pulling the curtain closed once again, returning to the other man he handed him his shirt and the small tube of Aloe Vera gel. "Just put this on if it gets itchy and should soothe your skin, if it causes you too much pain come find me and I'll write up some pain relief for you."

"I know where you are," Rick replied as he slipped his shirt on, feeling daring he climbed off the bed and pressed a quick kiss the doctors lip, put his cap on and walked out the tent with a 'see ya later' before heading to the mess hall. Dazed momentarily, Drew shook his head before he called the other soldier in for his medication, he had giddy smile on his face all night.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

A few days later, Drew found himself in the Mess Hall getting himself some lunch; well that's what he had been told it was, the food left a lot to be desired. Taking his tray he saw a few soldiers he had made friends with and sat with them. They were half through telling him about field mission they had come back from that morning when he felt the bench chair dip slightly as someone sat next to him. Drew didn't think much of it until he saw a hand reach across his plate and steal his bottled water.

"Do you mind?" Drew asked, his anger quickly fading when he saw it was Rick.

"If the captain's thirsty you must give them your drink, Captain's orders." Rolling his eyes, Drew returned to his conversation with the other soldiers. The doctor was quite enjoying his down time away from the Tent before he saw something out of the corner of his eye.

"What the hell are you doing?"

"What?" Rick asked innocently, as though he hadn't taken his Swiss army knife out and had started cutting into his finger.

"He's been doing it all day, thought he would surrender to the Taliban at one point if it meant he would get that splinter out," a soldier added, grinning as he watched his Captain go from pocket knife to corkscrew before digging back into his finger.

"I've had men in the octagon tap out earlier than this damn splinter," Rick grumble around his finger trying to now chew out the splinter. Sighing, Drew pulled the finger from the other man's mouth and inspected it.

"Aside from the bacteria that is no doubt on that knife, you've really butchered your finger."

"How can you even look at that while you're eating?" The soldier asked.

"In Med school I would eat breakfast while watching lectures on Autopsy's, this is child's play" Drew pushed the other man's hand away and returned to his food. "Swing by the Med Tent after lunch and I'll salvage the rest of your finger".

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Did you really do that? The eating and watching autopsy thing?" Rick asked, once again back in the Medical tent as Drew tended to his finger.

"All the time," Drew affirmed, a pair of tweezer held with precision in his right hand as he tried to grab the splinter. "Autopsies, brain dissections, joint replacements and the occasional birthing videos, they were a little harder to watch."

"That is so gay," Rick teased.

"I've probably seen and examined more vaginas then you ever have," Drew countered.

"Or will, I don't envy you at all," Rick whispered as he noticed other staff and patients moving around. Rick sat there for a little while as he watched his doctor try to remove the splinter lodged in his hand, noticing that Drew was probably caressing his hand more than necessary; not that he minded. He wasn't exactly sure when what Drew and he had, had actually started but it was nice. They had met during Basic training many years ago and it was history since then. Stationed in the same unit, same country even based in the same town back in America. They had bonded over their love of the outdoors, often reminiscing about previous camping trips and hiking adventures. Within the first 12 months of knowing each other they had become the best of friends, it was all going smoothly until they had planned a hiking trip to Canyon Lake with a few guys from their platoon. They had planned a group trip with three other guys but the day of the hike they had all come down with a nasty case of food poisoning from a bar they had visited the night before. Already having the time allotted Drew and Rick decided to go anyway.

Rick often joked that this particular story was a rip off of Brokeback Mountain as they both drank way too much and hooked up in a tent overlooking the mountain trail. It was a little awkward the next morning when they woke up and realised what had happened, they probably overanalysed and discussed it at a great length but in the end they both wouldn't change what happened.

"Rick?"

"Sorry, did you say something?"

"Yeah I asked what you're thinking so hard about,"

"Oh," Rick said, his features tinging slightly pink. "Thinking about that time when we went camping at Canyon Lake a few years ago"

"Camping in Canyon Lake… oh," Drew smirked, following the Captain's line of thought, "we should do that again sometime."

"Definitely. Maybe this summer, I'm stateside in ninety days so the season will only just be starting," Rick explained, watching as Drew was still searching for the pesky splinter.

"Don't remind me," Drew grimaced. "I only have fifteen, I don't like the thought of you over here without me."

"Why? Are you gonna miss me?" Rick teased.

"Of course I will," Drew said like it was obvious. "Just be careful, I don't need you to be blown up by an IED while I'm not around to fix you."

"I usually try to do that," Rick said, trying to lighten the mood. Drew sighed as he finally grabbed the splinter out and put it in the kidney dish next to him along with the tweezers. The doctor put a band aid over the small cut that was left behind, he went to turn away when he felt Rick grab his hand. "I'll be fine, I'm the Captain so I can make the other guys go ahead of me and they can be the ones that get blown up."

"That's not funny."

"I'll be fine," Rick lamented "we plan out missions, the guys in my platoon have my back. Nothing is going to happen to me."

"You can't promise that," Drew said defeated, taking a seat on the bed next to Rick who squeezed his hand.

"Maybe I can't but I'll try my hardest to keep it. Besides once you get back, you'll be working in the ER again. Some of the stories you have told me about your ride-alongs are a lot more terrifying than over here. Treating patients in burning buildings, car crashes where the cars have exploded while people were being rescued, don't even get me started on the Haunted House at the carnival where one of the workers went rouge and stabbed a clown."

"Hey I'm not a fan of clowns, how do you think I felt? Red nose and pale skin, looked like a more sadistic version of Pennywise."

"Exactly, you'll be too busy to even worry about me," Rick stated, he patted Drew's knee in a comforting manner before he stood up and looked at his right hand. "Is my hand gonna make it?"

"You better hope it does," Drew joked, taking off his disposable gloves as he smirked at the other man. "Without me around, it'll be the only thing keeping you company at night."

"Na," Rick replied, his own smirk taking over his face. "I'm left handed and it keeps me company even when you are around."

"Get out of here, I have real patients to see," Drew laughed, playfully pushing the other man towards the door. Rick winked at him as he walked backwards, it would have been a lot sexier if he didn't trip over one of the cords attached to the generator and almost land on his ass. The doctor rolled his eyes affectionately as he watched the other man collected himself before he went off towards his sleeping quarters, Drew had a pretty good idea what he was going to do once he got there.

Xxxxxxxxx Xxxxxxxx

Drew had exactly three hours left of active service before he got to head back to the states. Usually this would bring a smile to his face but there was one glaringly obvious thing that was bothering him.

Rick and his platoon had left for a mission three days ago and he still wasn't back. Drew tried to not let his mind wander but it was hard not to, be had overheard (eavesdropped on the commanders tent, sue him) that they were mostly safe but it was taking longer than he had hoped. One soldier had a few scrapes and bruises but mostly they were fine. This didn't ease Drew's mind though, normally on their last day they tried to spend as much time together as possible but you can't always predict things over here.

The doctor had tried to keep himself busy, his replacement had arrived so he had spent a good amount of time explaining the in's and outs of the Medical Tent, who got which medicine, allergies, where the supplies were and any other general questions they had. That had been fine for one day but after days of doing simple dressings and general medication, he almost wished for an accident just so he could focus on something else; almost.

Drew was packing his belongings, some of his room mates almost like seagulls as they 'dibs' his things he didn't necessarily need to take back with him. Slinging his duffle over his shoulder, he said his goodbyes to the men he had gotten close to in the last six months. Teasing one of them when he saw a tear form in the corner of his eye.

Before he headed to the Humvee that would take him to the plane so he could return home, he made a quick detour. Opening Rick's tent door, he walked inside and over to the bed. As the captain, Rick received a private tent; usually Rick would just bunk with the rest of his men but when Drew was assigned the same station as him he quickly took up the offer. Not that there had been many moments that they could utilise the tent to its full capacity but when they did, it was memorable to say the least.

Sadly smiling to himself, Drew reached into his scrub top and pulled out a tattered photo that he treasured dearly. It was a cheesy cliché photo of the two of them dressed in their fatigues, Rick holding the camera at arms lengths while Drew kissed his cheek, both looking stupidly happy. He placed it on Rick's pillow, knowing how much it meant to him. Sighing he stood up and headed for the door, knowing he couldn't put off the inevitable. The doctor had put one foot outside when he looked up he heard heavy breathing and running before he could process it, Drew was pushed into the tent. Stumbling back a few steps, his knees hit the side of the bed and he was being pushed down as he felt lips attack his own.

"Thank god I thought I missed you," Rick said breathlessly as he kissed Drew repeatedly. "We were supposed be back last night but we ran into a road block and they wouldn't let us through then there were gunshots and blood but all I could think about was getting to see you before you left."

"Wait blood, are you injured?" Drew asked, panicked as he pulled away slightly to assess him.

"It's fine, just a scrape. Bullet barely touched me," Rick dismissed, searching the others lips desperately.

"Rick!"

"Drew leave it! I don't want my last memory of us to be fighting." Against his better judgement, Drew listened as he caressed his fingers under the other man's shirt and deepened the kiss. They stayed that way for a few minutes, grasping desperately at each other trying to express everything before they had to separate. He was grateful for the few minutes they got to have together, Drew wasn't sure how he would have coped if he didn't get to see Rick before he left. The doctor tried to absorb everything before he had to go, the incredible feeling of Rick's lips against his, the Captain's muscular arms that encircled him tightly, even down to his scent which was currently a mix of the Afghanistan sand and slight coppery smell from the trace of blood on his arm.

Drew felt the other man frown slightly as his hand untangled from the Doctor's short hair, Drew followed the other man's line of sight as he caught onto Rick's confusion. The captain hoisted himself up on his propped elbow, smiling down at the photo he found on his pillow.

"I've always loved this photo."

"Me too," Drew admitted. "It was back when we first got together, I had just humiliatingly defeated you on that obstacle course-"

"I was recovering from a chest infection!" Rick countered indignantly.

"Who was the one that volunteered to stake out the enemy in that lake in the middle of winter?"

"I wanted to gain respect of my fellow men," Rick defended, Drew rolled his eyes affectionately and hugged Rick tighter.

"First picture of us kissing too,"

"Definitely won't be the last," Rick told.

"Just come back to me in piece, that's all I ask."

"I'll try my best," Rick said honestly, "all I ask is that you enjoy your time back home without me, don't sit at home moping."

"I don't mope," Drew said indignantly "pout maybe but I definitely don't mope."

"I love those pouty lips," Rick said as he kissed them again. Drew's happiness was short lived as he heard the rumble of the Humvee pull up outside. He sighed heavily as he looked up at the other man with a sad smile.

"I love you."

"I love you too," Rick expressed with just as much conviction, Drew pressed one last longing kiss to the other man's lips and he would deny it if Rick asked if a tear slipped from his eye.

"I'll have a bag of apples waiting for you when you get home," Drew said as he swung the duffle bag on his shoulder once again which received a laugh from the Captain. The doctor headed for the door, looking back to find Rick smiling sadly at the photo Drew had left behind. They shared one last longing glance before Drew slipped out of the tent and towards the vehicle, as he climbed in he saw his fellow men surround the car and wave goodbye as they drove away; Rick noticeably absent. Drew didn't blame him, he could do with some privacy at the moment to collect his thoughts.

As the Humvee made its journey towards the plane, Drew could only think about were those 74 days left that separate Rick and himself; hoping they would fly by.


End file.
